SAIA | Layoffs!!

The Midwest seems to be down on bill counts and weight. I know my terminal has no extra freight. And laid off 1 part time dock worker and a P/D driver.

It's not just Saia though. Friend of mine at O.D. has only been working 4 nights a week. And a Conway dock worker was down to 30 hours a week and he said he normally does 50-55 hours.

Not every employee that Saia hires is a great worker. I'm guessing they are using the slow down In freight to cull the herd. Which in my opinion has to happen from time to time.
The Midwest seems to be down on bill counts and weight. I know my terminal has no extra freight. And laid off 1 part time dock worker and a P/D driver.

It's not just Saia though. Friend of mine at O.D. has only been working 4 nights a week. And a Conway dock worker was down to 30 hours a week and he said he normally does 50-55 hours.

Not every employee that Saia hires is a great worker. I'm guessing they are using the slow down In freight to cull the herd. Which in my opinion has to happen from time to time.
The success this company has had in 2015 is no mistake. An operation ratio of 90 in the last quarter just didn't happen by mistake. It takes a strategic plan. And that is equal parts of hard work and planning. When preparation meets opportunity you find success. It's all of us working together as a team that brings a strategic plan to life. As the economy expands and we grow our market share through a superior product and dedication to our customers needs things will only get better. Our strategy must be to take action to grow our business. And sometimes sacrifices must be made to insure that necessary measures and precautions are taken in order to obtain our ultimate goal. And that's the customers needs. I am part of a team. And I understand that if we are to succeed we must always strive to create the best value to our customers. They can go anywhere to ship their freight because the competition is tough. We want them to ship with SAIA. And if we give them the best value they most certainly will. I think we are standing on the threshold of something great. I will leave you guys with a quote from the great L.P. Jacks. "The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; the optimist, the opportunity in every difficulty.
 
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"A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both." L.P. Jacks.
 
"A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both." L.P. Jacks.
"A nap is always better than working." Dracula
 
Sacrifices at drivers expense ? Sorry but u don't reach success by laying ppl off .. These ppl helped Saia get to where they are today .. look at OD are they taking action on employees ?
 
Sacrifices at drivers expense ? Sorry but u don't reach success by laying ppl off .. These ppl helped Saia get to where they are today .. look at OD are they taking action on employees ?
Compare apples to apples. OD wasn't built overnight and besides who knows what OD may do in the near future. Everyone I'm sure will be part of this layoff not just the drivers. Your not looking at the big picture. This company needs the flexibility to run their business the way they see fit. Not all decisions will be popular and your negative attitude won't help. If this company were to lay me off tomorrow I would be disappointed but I would just draw my unemployment and carry on. I have a perfect CDL ... CSA ... DAC ... No problem. In time I would find something else. My job is just that. A job. My life is my family and my health. As long as I have that. I have everything I need. I take nothing for granted and I appreciate everything SAIA has done for me. But if they choose to go a different direction. No harm. No foul. It is what it is. I would say thank you for the opportunity and I wish you the best of luck. They treated me well and I have no complaints.
 
I agree if it's slow then obviously we need to reduce workforce if it's warranted. But what I don't agree with is the fact that they just lay off whoever they feel like and seniority means nothing. Why have a seniority list if it doesn't mean a damn thing?? Hell even the A-holes at Con-Way would go by seniority when it was time to lay people off.

Great way to throw morale down the crapper, IMO. Sure hasn't inspired a lot of confidence in the drivers around here, including myself.
 
Okay runawaytrain, #1, I doubt you would gladly accept a layoff without any I'll will. Losing a job is comparable to a death, there are the same emotions involved. I understand that there are times companies must purge the dead weight. This purge can be accomplished throughout the year, during the normal course of business. That would be stating policies, guidelines, and goals, then actually following up and enforcing said policies. Also, there was not any attempt to find a way to improve there practices. Example, having a Linehaul driver take empties west to the next terminal when there are two loaded trailers going west past that terminal that sit. Why not move that freight farther down the road? Example #2, train dock workers how to properly load outbound freight using proper securement practices, (trained by people who have never physically loaded a trailer) yet no follow up in making sure they are actually loading the proper way. Up until 2 months ago, Saia was hiring like crazy, now a mass layoff? Yes, there is more to the story, and there is more to your story too. You don't sound like an active driver, more like current management. Just my observation.
 
I agree if it's slow then obviously we need to reduce workforce if it's warranted. But what I don't agree with is the fact that they just lay off whoever they feel like and seniority means nothing. Why have a seniority list if it doesn't mean a damn thing?? Hell even the A-holes at Con-Way would go by seniority when it was time to lay people off.

Great way to throw morale down the crapper, IMO. Sure hasn't inspired a lot of confidence in the drivers around here, including myself.
It is the exception ... Not the rule. Most the time they do go by seniority. And when they don't it because those employees are troublemakers. Sometimes a guy that you perceive as a good worker is actually a POS that jeopardizes you. That's why I say. There is ALWAYS more to it than meets the eye. Whether it's stealing time or just a **** poor attitude. There is always something going on behind the scenes that you don't know. It's not always black and white.
 
Get rid of the garbage! Long over due. We could use these people at other locations to help us out. Maybe it's the crappy employees who bring down the good ones with their "whiners get what you want attitude" quite honestly its sad people lost their jobs , but perhaps they should watch the social media end of it. Start with the one's who bash the hell out of us and still get away with it! Just saying
 
I agree if it's slow then obviously we need to reduce workforce if it's warranted. But what I don't agree with is the fact that they just lay off whoever they feel like and seniority means nothing. Why have a seniority list if it doesn't mean a damn thing?? Hell even the A-holes at Con-Way would go by seniority when it was time to lay people off.

Great way to throw morale down the crapper, IMO. Sure hasn't inspired a lot of confidence in the drivers around here, including myself.

Seniority list is for vacation and bid runs/start times.

Layoffs based on performance... I think is a great thing. Why should a new guy that is giving it 110% everyday get sent home.......And a guy that gives 80% on a good day get to stay?

With that being said I don't want to see anyone lose there job.
But I also want to be on a winning team.
 
My point, and pay attention here VirginiaTech, is that layoffs usually affect the front line employees, not sales, middle management, etc. I would bet my next check that if any one of you were part of this layoff, you would be singing a different tune. It's irritating that management types so often get a pass and are never looked at as part of the overall problem. So freight volume is down...and Saia punishes drivers and dock workers? How about get rid of sales people, regional sales people, or whomever else is responsible for putting the freight on the trucks.
 
My point, and pay attention here VirginiaTech, is that layoffs usually affect the front line employees, not sales, middle management, etc. I would bet my next check that if any one of you were part of this layoff, you would be singing a different tune. It's irritating that management types so often get a pass and are never looked at as part of the overall problem. So freight volume is down...and Saia punishes drivers and dock workers? How about get rid of sales people, regional sales people, or whomever else is responsible for putting the freight on the trucks.
 
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